Birthday Lantern
by Lyra Mae Rose
Summary: Luffy let out a small, nostalgic chuckle before he turned to Usopp and replied, "Can you write 'Happy Birthday, Ace?" Usopp's eyes widened and he let out a small gasp, almost dropping the pen in his hand. (In which Luffy wanted to celebrate Ace's birthday for the first time since his death - properly)
**YOU.** _ **DON'T. KNOW**_ **. HOW** _ **LONG**_ **IT TOOK FOR ME TO MAKE THIS.**

 **That's the first thing I wanted to say, because this story took so terribly** _ **long**_ **for me to make. I'm not complaining or anything, just wanted to say** _ **FINALLY! THIS STORY'S DONE!**_

 **But literally though. The idea of this story first came to me a few months ago, like maybe three or four months. And, I started writing it shortly after that. But then, BOOM! Exam! Again and again and again and again and-well, you got the gist.**

 **So, I made this in the** _ **small**_ **gaps of spare time I had between exams, which is not a lot. But finally, most of my exams are** _ **done**_ **and all that remains is the final exam in May (hey, that rhymed!). So, my spare time kind of grew. THANK YOU GOD!**

 **So, I started to bring my laptop to school. Since the final exam only consists of 4 subjects, the time I spend in school decreased due to the other subjects not being needed anymore (** _ **hehehe**_ **). But because of that, I get bored very easily. I have a few reasons; a) The subject's not fun, b) The teacher's not fun, c) I already know the subject, d) The teacher's absent so we're given some free time and e) Not in the mood for studying.**

 **And due to those reasons (reason d is more frequent), I usually go to my laptop and continue writing the story. Because sometimes, the best ideas come to me when I'm in school/hell. Sometimes, I bring my laptop at it's lunch break as well. Every second counts, after all. And most of my friends know that I'm** _ **still**_ **working on a story that's not done yet, so whenever I bring my laptop one of my friends says, "** _ **Really**_ **? You're not finished yet?"**

 **"Hey, this story's long!" That's my usual reply. My friend gives me this skeptical look, glances at the word count (which was more than 10,000), and says, "How can a story be** _ **that**_ **long when the whole gist of it is** _ **to fly a freaking lantern**_ **? You're not even close to that!"**

 **And to be honest, the only comeback I could think of was, "There's no limit to imagination!"**

 **Okay, enough about me. Just skip this and go straight to the story, please. No, I'm serious. Just go. What, the disclaimer? I'll do that later, so just-! Ugh, _fine_!**

 **I claim that One Piece isn't mine already so just** _ **go!**_

* * *

Luffy sat on Sunny's figurehead and gazed at the bright, blue sky. The captain's hands were below his head and he had a blank look on his face. Luffy watched as the seagulls squawked in the air and the clouds slowly passed above him.

Luffy pursed his lips slightly and he seemed to be thinking about something. His eyes switched between the clouds as quick thoughts passed through his head. Luffy absent-mindedly brought his hand up to his chest and he rubbed the slightly rough texture of his big scar.

Then, as if a light bulb appeared in his mind, Luffy's eyes lit up and the boy slowly grinned. He brought his hand away from his chest and quickly stood up. Luffy turned around and his eyes searched the open deck.

When he found what he was looking for, the captain mischevously chuckled before stretching his arms forward and grabbed on the white railing around the ship. "Gomu Gomu no..!" Luffy said before he retracted his arms and launched into the open air. "Rocket!"

Nami glanced to her left and she nearly shrieked when she saw her captain approaching in breakneck speed. "W-Wait, Luffy-!" She managed to say before a mop of black hair crashed onto her and they were both sent catapulting onto the deck.

When they finally halted into a stop, Luffy let out a laugh and grinned. "Hi, Nami-" But, he wasn't able to finish as Nami's fist quickly came in contact with his face.

"WHAT THE HELL WERE YOU DOING, YOU IDIOT!?" Nami screamed in frustration. Despite the bruise on his cheek, Luffy still managed to grin. "Sorry!"

Nami glared at her captain for another moment before she let out a sigh. "Give me a warning next time." The navigator muttered as she stood up and sweeped the dirt and dust off her body.

When she was sure that there was none left, Nami turned to Luffy with a questioning (and annoyed) look. "So, what do you want?"

Luffy flashed her a grin before saying, "Nami, are there any islands nearby?"

Nami blinked. "Islands?" The girl quickly pulled out a map from her pocket and checked their current positon. "Hm, yes." Nami replied. "But it'll take at least a day to reach it."

Luffy's slow mind took in what she said and pouted. "That's too long!" The captain whined.

Nami sighed at the rubber boy's childish attitude. "You have to be patient, Luffy."

"I can't!" Luffy grumbled. And, that was the truth. One day was too long, and Luffy won't be able to do what he wanted to do.

But his answer was a rolled map hitting his head. "And whose fault is that?!" Nami shouted.

Luffy rubbed the growing bruise on his head and scowled. "Ah, Nami's a meanie!" The captain said as he stood up and quickly walked away from the navigator. Nami stared at Luffy's back with an irritated look before she narrowed her eyes in suspicion.

It was normal for Luffy to ask her about the nearest island. But it was unusual for him not to cry out, "I want to go on an adventure!" as well.

 _What is that boy up to now?_ Nami thought.

* * *

Luffy walked through the hallway and looked around for a certain door. When he found it, he turned the doorknob and opened it, doing a quick observation inside. Numerous bookshelves were seen around the circular room and in the middle was a hexagonal-shaped table with chairs encircling it. Luffy grinned when he spotted his archeologist sitting on of the chairs with a book on the table.

"Ah, Robin! I knew I'd find you here." Luffy said, closing the door behind him. Robin looked up from her book and smiled when she saw her captain. "Hello, Luffy. What can I do for you?"

Luffy walked over to her and pulled out a chair. "Robin, you know every single book in this library right?" Luffy asked as he sat down next to her.

Robin raised an eyebrow at the uncommon question, but she nodded anyway. "Yes, I haven't read all of them, but I know what they're about." The young woman clarified.

"Great!" Luffy's grin grew a touch wider before he asked, "Are there any books about lanterns?"

Robin blinked at the even more uncommon question. "Lanterns?"

"Yeah."

Robin put her confusion aside and processed her mind to remember of any books relating to lanterns. "I think there are a few." The archeologist thought out loud before she turned to Luffy with a puzzled look. "Why do you ask, Luffy?"

"No reason." Luffy grinned and gave her a light shrug before his eyes lit up in excitement. "Can you show me those books, Robin?"

Robin frowned at how her captain brushed off her question, but that thought went away as she was currently under the impression that Luffy's big, pleading eyes seemed to make it impossible for her to say no.

The young woman giggled. Luffy never ceased to surprise her. "Sure."

* * *

Luffy grumbled as he climbed down the stairs to the lower deck. Robin said that there were a few, but twelve big books were not Luffy's definition of _a few_. Not to mention that three of them were twice as thick and heavy than the others.

"Why would a book be this thick when it was just about a lantern?" Luffy grumbled under his breath. "Was the writer a lantern lover or something?"

Right now, the teenager was currently holding four books with his left hand, five books with his right and he had the three thick books balanced on his head. "These are heavy." Luffy whined as he positioned his arms again.

No sooner did he say that than a few arms suddenly sprouted from the hallway around him and took a few books from his grasp. Luffy let out a relieved sigh when most of the heavy weight was gone and he turned to the arms and gave it a thumbs-up. "Thanks, Robin!"

One of the arms did the same in reply, making Luffy grin. Then, he continued walking down the stairs until he reached the lower deck, with Robin's arms following behind him. When he spotted a particular door, Luffy quickly pushed it open and walked inside.

"Usopp! Where are you?" Luffy yelled as he looked around the room.

A banner that read "Usopp Factory" was seen on one of the walls. Beside it was a drawing board that was filled with messy scribbles of plans and formulas that was extremely foreign to Luffy. A barrel could be seen on its left, holding a lot of sheets of blank paper for blueprints and doodles. Behind the drawing board was a wooden box that contained a lot of metal parts that, apparently, wasn't used yet.

"Huh, Luffy?" A voice called out behind the drawing board. Then, a hand appeared on top of it, waving at Luffy's direction. "I'm right here!"

Luffy grinned and made his way to where his sniper was, with Robin's arms not far behind. When he reached it, Luffy could see Usopp rummaging inside a wooden box.

"What are you doing, Usopp?" Luffy asked, tilting his head.

"I'm looking for my torch." Usopp said without looking up from the box. "I couldn't find it in my toolbox, so I think I dropped it here somewhere."

"Oh." Luffy mumbled in understanding. "Have you found it yet?"

Usopp let out a sigh. "No. It's not in here."

"I can help you find it later." Luffy offered with a grin before he glanced at the books in his arms. "But, help me first!"

Usopp finally looked up to his friend and he arched his eyebrows when he saw the luggage Luffy was holding. "Why are you carrying a lot of books?" Usopp asked. Then, he glanced at the arms behind Luffy. "And, why is Robin doing the same?"

"Ah, Robin's helping me." Luffy replied. "Some of the books were so heavy!"

"Again, why are you carrying books?" Usopp repeated his question. "As far as I know, you've never been interested in reading them."

"Right, but now I do." Luffy said as he put the books down and showed the sniper one of the covers.

" _Lantern 101_?" Usopp read out loud. He pushed the book aside and stared at Luffy with a bewildered look. "You want to make lanterns?"

"Yup!" Luffy nodded. "But, I don't get these instructions at all! So, Robin told me to ask for your help."

"Why do you want to make a lantern?" Usopp said as he took one of the books and flicked through it.

"I want to do something tonight." Luffy answered, not bothering to tell anything more than that. "Can you teach me how to make these?"

Usopp looked up from the book and stared at his friend with a semi-skeptical look. He knew that Luffy was a surprising and random person (he could never predict the guy), but he never expected Luffy wanting to make lanterns of all things. If he had counted how many times Luffy had surprised him, this would be number six hundred and thirty eight.

Usopp had told his captain 'no' countless of times (either due to fear or stubbornness), but as he stared into Luffy's hopeful eyes, he concluded that this wasn't one of them. "Well, if you say so." Usopp shrugged before gesturing to the wooden box beside him. "Come on, help me get the materials."

Luffy's eyes lit up like a kid in the candy store, making Usopp smile and wonder why would he say no in the first place.

* * *

Sanji hummed as he walked through the ship corridor. It was that time of day again. The time to serve his gorgeous Nami-swan and Robin-chwan some of his excellent cooking.

"What should I make?" Sanji muttered, running his fingers through his small beard. "We had soufflé yesterday, so that's a no. Hm, sushi? Nah, we had that three days ago." Sanji let out a long drag of smoke before mumbling, "Salad? Nah, that shitty captain would beg for meat instead. So something with meat..." Sanji trailed off before he stopped at the kitchen door and opened it.

But when the cook went inside, he was greeted by the sight of Luffy and Usopp sprawled on the floor. The duo was measuring a huge piece of fabric and Luffy traced some messy and uneven lines that, Sanji assumed, was supposed to be a pattern. Circling the two was a range of materials and equipment that...weren't in a tidy position, so to say.

Sanji scowled at how dirty his kitchen was, but nonetheless his curiosity got the better of him. "What are you two idiots doing?"

Usopp and Luffy looked up from their work and finally noticed an additional member in the room. "Oh hi, Sanji!" Luffy greeted his cook with a grin.

"We're making a lantern." Usopp clarified to the blonde.

Sanji raised a swirly eyebrow. "Lantern? For what?"

"Luffy said he wants to do something tonight." Usopp stated, glancing at the boy.

"Yeah!" Luffy nodded eagerly.

"Why tonight?" Sanji asked as he walked closer to them. Truth be told, this was pretty unusual for Luffy. The blonde hadn't known that his captain liked lanterns. Well. they had never encountered a place with lanterns before, so that was understandable.

"Why?" Luffy repeated. The teenager pursed his lips in thought before he flashed Sanji a smile and replied, "Because, today's special!"

"Special?" Sanji said, puzzled. Then, he turned to see the calender on the wall. "Oh yeah. Today's the first day of the year, isn't it?"

For a brief moment, Sanji got no reply. The cook was confused at the silence and he turned around to ask Luffy again. But, Luffy wasn't looking at him. Instead he silently stared at the calendar, particularly at the number one in January.

Sanji was bemused at his captain's antics, but before he could say anything about it, Luffy let out his signature chuckle and turned to him with a grin. "Yup! That's right!"

Sanji stared at the boy with a doubtful expression. He glanced at Usopp to see if he knew what was going on, but the sniper merely shrugged. Deciding to put that matter aside for now, Sanji noticed the untidy floor around them and sighed. "You two can do this somewhere else, can't you?"

"Nope, the smell of food makes me more fired up!" Luffy clarified as if it was a fact.

"To tell you the truth, I was getting a bit hungry too." Usopp reasoned, sheepishly rubbing his stomach.

"You know that I can just bring the food down to the Usopp Factory." Sanji stated as he exhaled a puff of smoke from his cigarette.

"No!" Luffy shook his head and pouted. "I want to eat here!"

Sanji stared at the duo and the mess they made, and began to consider his options. He'd never decline someone that was asking for food, but he could ask them to wait. Especially if that someone was making a mess like those two idiots here.

But, they _were_ hungry. And, he probably won't have the time or energy to go down the lower deck to bring these guys food (unless if it were Nami-swan and Robin-chwan, of course).

"Fine." Sanji eventually said as he turned around and walked to the stove. "But, clean that up before Nami-san and Robin-san arrive, you got it?"

Upon hearing the cook's permission, Luffy's face broke into a grin while Usopp just had a grateful smile. "Okay!"

"Alright, let's get back to work!" Usopp said, focusing back on the project they were doing. "Luffy, can't you make those lines a bit tidier?"

"But, it's so hard!" Luffy whined as he held the pencil in his hand and tried to make it steady.

Usopp sighed before he leaned forward and grabbed the pencil from Luffy's hands. "Okay, let me do that." The sniper then handed Luffy the measuring tape he used earlier. "You measure the fabric here."

Sanji listened to the duo's conversation with a fond smile on his lips. He had spent a lot of time with those two knuckleheads along with the others in the crew, but lately he was letting them do whatever they want in his kitchen. Whether that be Usopp experimenting with his work, Chopper mixing ingredients for some medicine, or even the Moss Head sleeping on the couch. Sanji let out a small chuckle as he grabbed a few pans from the cabinet. Geez, he was really getting soft, wasn't he?

"Sanji." The cook blinked and turned his head around to see Luffy staring at him with a grin.

"What?"

"Can you light the fire later?" Luffy asked as he crossed his legs and slightly rocked back and forth.

Sanji stared at his young captain, silently scrutinising him. Other people wouldn't realise it, but Luffy's tone was a touch softer than usual. No, soft wasn't the right word. The rubber boy sounded more...sincere. And, everyone knew what that meant.

A sincere Luffy was a serious Luffy. And no matter the situation, a serious Luffy always gets what he wants. Up to this day, everyone who had denied Luffy of what he wanted always ended up as his personal punching bag.

Despite the fact that he was younger than him, Sanji didn't want anything to do with that side of Luffy. Because sometimes, Luffy could be scarier than the devil himself.

So, the blonde gave his captain a light shrug and said, "Well, I've got nothing else to do."

The captain chuckled and grinned wider. "Thanks!" Sanji glanced at him and smiled when he spotted the other reason why he didn't (and wouldn't) refuse.

Luffy's grin could even outshine the sun, after all.

"Oi, Luffy!" Usopp called out to the boy, halting from his work. "Go measure the fabric!"

"Oh yeah."

"Stop your whining and just do it, idiot."

"Said the one that has I-can't-go-to-the-island disease whenever we dock to an island."

"That's different, Sanji! My diseases are _very_ islandly sensitive, you know."

"That's not even a word."

* * *

Luffy and Usopp continued on making the sky lantern until the sun had set and it was time for dinner. The other crew members started to enter the room one by one. Everyone other than Robin and Zoro was surprised to see Luffy sprawled on the floor.

It wasn't the sight of Luffy working that surprised them, but rather the fact that Luffy was _actually_ _being still and_ _quiet_ for more than five minutes.

"What are you making, Luffy?" Chopper asked curiously as he walked closer to the working duo.

Luffy looked up from his work and grinned at the reindeer. "A lantern!"

Chopper tilted his head. "A lantern?"

"Yeah." Luffy nodded, gesturing to the object. Chopper stepped forward and stared at it with wonder.

"What's a lantern?" Chopper couldn't help but ask. Th ere weren't any lanterns back at Drum Island. So, this was the first time Chopper saw these kind of things outside of his home.

"I'd like to know that as well, if you don't mind." Brook said, joining the conversation.

"Oh, you didn't have any lanterns fifty years ago, Brook?" Usopp asked as he finished cutting the fabric into four large pieces.

"It's like a small hot air balloon, only it's made of paper." Robin replied as she took a seat on a chair and opened the book she brought with her.

Chopper's mouth formed a small 'o' and the reindeer slowly nodded. "Oh, I see!"

"That makes sense." Brook hummed, taking in what Robin had said. "I've seen them only a few times before, so I forgot about it. Yohohoho!"

Behind them, Zoro let out a yawn and glanced at their direction out of the corner of his eye. "But, why a lantern?" The swordsman asked.

Usopp heard his question and gave him a light shrug. "Beats me."

Nami pulled out one of the chairs and sat on with her elbow on the table. "If it's for the New Years, you're one day too late Luffy."

"Shishishi! Don't worry, Nami!" Luffy grinned. The boy brought his hand to the fabric near him and gently rubbed the texture. "It's not for that."

Nami raised an eyebrow at the teenager as her curiosity grew inside of her. But before she could ask any further, Usopp beat her to it and asked Luffy to hold the pieces of fabric together. The captain obeyed and held the fabric tightly until the sniper finished gluing them together into one big piece of fabric.

Nami grumbled a bit at how her chance of interrogation was stolen (by _Usopp_ , nonetheless), but she quieted down and decided to ask him after dinner.

A few minutes later, Sanji came out of the kitchen with plates of food placed on his hands and shoulders.

"Nami-swan! Robin-chwan! Your dinner is ready!" The cook exclaimed as he gently placed two plates before the two ladies. "The menu today is beef wellington. The ingredients we got from the last island were one of a kind, so I made a superb dinner so that it would match your exceptional beauty!"

Nami smiled when the delicious aroma of the food reached her nose and she flashed Sanji a grateful smile. "Thank you, Sanji-kun."

Robin put her book aside and slowly cut a piece of the beef with a fork. "As always, the food is well done." Robin commented as she inspected the pink texture inside the beef. The young woman glanced at Sanji and gave him a smile too. "You're an amazing cook, Sanji."

Sanji's eyes turned into pink hearts and a tint of red appeared on the his cheeks. A small trail of blood could be seen coming from his nostril as he slowly stepped back. "I-I don't deserve such words." Sanji muttered as his face turned as red as a tomato.

"Oi, Swirly Brow!" Zoro called out as he leaned back on his chair. "Where's _my_ dinner?"

A tick formed on Sanji's forehead and the cook turned to give the swordsman a fierce glare. "Would it kill you to be patient just this once, stupid Moss Head? I'm busy serving the ladies!"

"I don't care!" Zoro stated, glaring at Sanji as well. "I want some sake now!"

"I'm hungry too, Sanji." Chopper mumbled from his chair, the reindeer rubbing his small growling stomach. "I want that beef..."

"Me too." Brook added beside him. "My stomach's been growling for a while now. Although, I don't have a stomach to begin with. Yohohoho!"

"Just Cola is fine by me." Franky casually said on his seat.

"I don't care for you idiots." Sanji glanced at Chopper for a brief moment before he eventually let out a defeated sigh. "But...alright. Let me get your dinner."

Zoro snickered at the cook, who was walking back to the kitchen. "Getting soft there, Mr. Nosebleed."

"Shut up, Moss Head." Sanji snarled at the swordsman. "Or your plate would be the only one empty."

* * *

After he brought the remaining plates of food onto the table, Sanji turned to the duo that was still on the floor.

"Hey, you shitty idiots." Sanji called out as he gestured to the two empty seats. "Come here and eat your dinner."

"Wait, Sanji!" Luffy said, not looking up from the unfinished lantern. "It's not done yet."

"It's not?" Sanji asked in curiosity. The cook walked to his captain and inspected the object. "It looks done to me."

"Nope, it needs one more thing." Luffy stated as he grabbed the lantern and shoved it in Usopp's face. "Usopp, you're good at writing a glee-graphy right?"

Usopp's eye twitched at the object before him before he put it away from his line of sight and answered, "It's _calligraphy_."

"That's what I said." Luffy said blankly, making the sniper sweat-drop. "Anyway, can you do that?"

Usopp thought over what his captain said for a moment before he gave Luffy a nod. "Sure, I guess." Then, the sniper grabbed a nearby pen and put the lantern on the floor. "Where do you want me to write?"

Luffy crawled to the spot beside Usopp and stared at the blank lantern. "Um..." His eyes moved back and forth until he spotted a perfect place on the middle of the fabric. "Here!" Luffy said, pointing his finger to the spot.

"Okay." Usopp positioned his hand on the spot Luffy had pointed to and glanced back at the boy. "What should I write, then?"

Luffy pondered over that question and started to think of the words in his head. Not a minute later, Luffy's eyes lit up and a wide grin slowly emerged on his rubber face. He had just the perfect sentence to complete that lantern.

The captain let out a small, nostalgic chuckle before he turned to Usopp and replied, "Can you write _'Happy Birthday, Ace'_?"

Usopp's eyes widened and he let out a small gasp, almost dropping the pen in his hand.

At the dining table, everyone froze. All of them halted in eating and none of them moved a muscle. The room went unnaturally silent, so silent you could hear a pin drop.

It was as if time had stopped.

"W-What was that, Luffy?" Usopp stuttered as he lowered his head, desperately wishing for Luffy to not say what he thought he said.

"Happy Birthday, Ace." Luffy repeated with a grin, not noticing the stutter in the sniper's voice.

"O-Oh." Usopp said in a low voice, barely above a whisper. He didn't know why, but hearing those words from Luffy felt...wrong. In truth, nothing from that sentence was actually faulty, but hearing it from _Luffy_ of all people left a bitter taste in the sniper's mouth.

But despite that, it made perfect sense. Everything Luffy had done up to this point confused the sniper, from carrying books (real, actual _books_ ) towards his workshop to suddenly wanting to make a lantern, but that sentence made all of the pieces fit together.

Although Luffy's a pretty random person, he doesn't do things without a reason.

But apparently, Luffy must've mistook his silence for something else, since the next thing Usopp heard was a voice filled with concern. "...what? Is it wrong?"

Usopp looked up so fast he could've sworn his neck shifted. "Wha- _ **No**_! No, no, no, no, no! It's perfectly fine!"

Luffy gave him one more doubtful look before a smile slowly came forth on his face. "Alright."

Feeling a wave of relief wash over him – and thanking the heavens for his convincing acting ability, Usopp quickly pulled out a paintbrush and a can of paint from his bag (because, that sentence didn't deserve to be written by a mere _pen_ ). Then, the sniper marked where Luffy wanted the calligraphy to be. "You wanted it here, right?"

"Yeah!" Luffy said as he moved closer and sat beside Usopp. The latter nodded and dipped the paintbrush into the can of paint. Then, he carefully put the paintbrush over the marked spot.

"Okay, here I go." Usopp said. But when he noticed that his hand was shaking, he scowled.

 _Stop shaking, damn it._ The sniper thought as he quietly inhaled a deep breath through his nose and proceeded to slowly and carefully draw small strokes on the fabric.

"Happy..." Usopp muttered, drawing the first word.

" _Oh, why hello everyone." A freckled face similar to Luffy said. "I trust my little brother has been in your care."_

Usopp was caught off guard at the sudden memory, but he didn't let it show and continued. "Birthday.."

" _He has no manners." A small grin appeared and the person chuckled. "So he'll probably end up burning your hands a few times."_

Usopp was about to dip the paintbrush again until a thought occurred in his mind and he pulled out another can of paint from his bag. Then, he dipped his brush and focused back on the calligraphy. It took everything in him not to make his hand shake or quiver as he drew the most important piece of the puzzle. "..Ace.."

 _He bowed. "I'll entrust him to you."_

The last one brought tears to the sniper's eyes but he quickly blinked and held it back. Usopp let out a breath and leaned backwards to look at his work.

The calligraphy was drawn in perfect lines, with the word 'Ace' drawn in the colour red while the rest were in black. Usopp inspected it and he saw no faults anywhere. A sense of pride blossomed in the sniper's chest and he smiled.

This was the least he could do for his mistake of not remembering this special day.

Luffy noticed his friend completing his work and leaned his head forward to see it. "Is it done, Usopp?" The teenager asked, glancing at the sniper.

Usopp blinked and he quickly came back to reality. "Um, wait a second." The pirate said as he quickly blew on the wet paint and gently touched it to check the consistency. When his finger didn't smudge the calligraphy, Usopp added a few extra lines around the drawing and gave it to the boy beside him. "There, it's ready."

Luffy beamed and the corners of his lips disclosed a wide grin. "Alright! Now, it's perfect!" Luffy said, taking the lantern from Usopp's hands and stared at the object with absolute wonder. "Thanks, Usopp!"

Said person chuckled sheepishly and gave Luffy a thumbs-up. "No problem."

Then, Usopp finally took notice of the lack of commotion in the room. He glanced at the dining table and was surprised at how the rest of the crew was staring at them (or Luffy, in particular) in bafflement.

Though at the same time, a part of him wasn't fazed at all. Since the name that Luffy mentioned was considered a taboo among the eight crew members. They didn't say it, but all of them were nervous ( _scared_ , even) that the scars Luffy had obtained two years ago weren't healed yet. So, none of them brought it up unless their captain did it first.

But, Luffy had never mentioned Ace even once since their reunion at the Sabaody Archipelago. Therefore, their reaction of hearing the name out loud from Luffy for the first time was natural.

Nami broke out of her daze first. The navigator seemed like she had something to say but she turned to the others around her first. All of them were still in a shock and none of them made a sound, they didn't even notice her glancing at them. Nami scowled, she had to be the one to take the first step.

The girl opened her mouth to say something but a look of hesitation emerged and the navigator faltered. But, she narrowed her eyes in determination and Nami drew in a breath before she quietly asked, "So...today is Ace's birthday?"

Luffy locked eyes with her and nodded, with the grin still glued to his face. "Yeah!"

Just like that, the trance on the crew shattered. All of them blinked and quickly focused on Luffy and Nami's conversation. Now that someone had taken the first step, some of the tension fled from their bodies.

"I see." Nami uttered in comprehension. The girl had a frown on her face when she said, "That's why you wanted to make a lantern? You wanted to celebrate his birthday?"

"That's right!" Luffy nodded.

Nami nodded absentmindedly, taking in the information in her head. The girl thought back to Luffy's behaviour this morning and something in her mind clicked.

Of course.

The question about islands. The sense of urgency. It all made sense.

Despite what other people may think, Luffy wasn't an entirely dumb person. It's hard to believe, but he's actually one of the smarter people in the world. He doesn't do it all the time, but Luffy likes to think before he act. Whenever he does that, he'll make sure everything goes according to plan. But again, he only does this on rare occasions.

No wonder Luffy had asked her if there were any islands nearby. He wanted to go and buy a lantern. And since she said it'd take a day to reach it, Luffy decided to make his own.

Now that she thought about it, Luffy stating that he couldn't wait was pretty rational too. Since, the deadline was tonight.

"Why a lantern, though?" Robin finally voiced out. Although she finished most of the puzzle, there were still a few pieces that confused her.

Luffy turned to her with a smile. "Ace loved lanterns."

Robin blinked. "Really?"

"Yeah." Luffy nodded, a sense of nostalgia surfacing as the boy recalled his early childhood. "When my village threw night parties, the two of us would always sit on a cliff and watch them fly to the sky." The captain could still remember the wonder both of them had felt when they observed the flying lanterns up close.

Then, Luffy gazed back at the lantern in his grip and felt the same wonder surfacing inside. "So, what better way to celebrate his birthday than with a lantern?"

Hearing how their young captain's voice held a lot of wonder, the Straw-Hats couldn't help but smile as well.

"That's a great idea, Luffy!" Chopper expressed with thrilled eyes. "When will you release it?"

"Tonight!" Luffy declared, his face basically radiating happiness. "So the lantern will be part of the stars, another thing that Ace loved!"

Despite their very best in holding it in, the Straw-Hats flinched a bit at the name. "I see..." Brook mumbled in a low voice. For once, the musician was glad that he was a skeleton. Because, Luffy wouldn't be able to see him frown in guilt.

"Yeah!" Luffy said enthusiastically.

Zoro stared at the younger boy with a blank face. Then, his gaze averted from Luffy to the sky lantern in his hand. An image of a grinning, freckled man at a desert came into mind and Zoro vaguely narrowed his eyes. "...You need some help?"

Luffy turned to him with a puzzled look. "Huh?"

But, Zoro didn't give him an answer. Instead, he stood up from his seat and walked over to Luffy before crouching down on one knee beside him. The swordsman scrutinised the lantern for a moment before pointing his finger to a small section of it. "The string here's too loose."

Usopp raised his eyebrows and came closer to the duo. "Oh, you're right." The sniper muttered when he saw the unsteady piece of string. "I didn't see that."

"Hey, Robin!" Zoro suddenly called out as he glanced at the raven-haired archeologist. "You have small fingers. Tie these up."

Robin quickly caught on to what Zoro was trying to do and the woman let out a small giggle. "Alright."

By this point, the rest of the crew got the message as well. Sanji walked over to them and he brought his hand to the lantern and caressed the texture slightly. "The fabric's a bit dirty." Sanji muttered as he saw the dust gathered on his finger. "Let me get some cleaning tools in the kitchen."

"It doesn't smell good either." Nami's face contorted in distaste when she sniffed the scent in the air around the lantern. A thoughtful look appeared and the ginger-haired girl smiled. "I have a perfume that works just right!"

Meanwhile, Luffy just sat there and stared at his friends in bewilderment. "What are you guys doing?"

In turn, all of them halted and gave Luffy a dumb look, making the boy blink in confusion.

"Making sure this lantern is worthy for Ace, idiot." Zoro replied as if it was as clear as day. The green-haired man brought his hand to Luffy's forehead and gave it a flick, earning a small wince from the captain. "You're not so thorough in crafts, after all."

Luffy rubbed his forehead absentmindedly as he gaped at his crew. All of them still gave him a dumb look (which annoyed him a bit), but the captain took notice of a small glimmer in their eyes. Then, Zoro's words rang through his head again and Luffy finally registered what they meant.

A grin slowly came forth and Luffy chuckled. "Shishishi, you're right!"

Zoro's eye softened and he had a small affectionate smile on his face, with the others doing the same.

Back at the dining table, Franky stared at the lantern and suddenly an imaginary lightbulb appeared over his head. "I have an idea." Franky mumbled as he sauntered over to his captain and pointed his finger at the lantern. "Luffy, can I borrow this for a while?"

Luffy turned to him with a raised eyebrow. "Huh? What for?"

"I want to make it special." Franky grinned. Everyone could almost see the gears running in his head.

Knowing that Franky wouldn't damage the lantern and instead would make it look awesome, Luffy quickly nodded. "Sure!"

"Good!" Franky beamed as he gently grabbed the lantern from his captain and made his way to the door. "Wait here, I'll be back."

"Hey, wait a second!" Nami shouted to the cyborg, recalling her intention a few minutes ago. "I haven't sprayed my perfume yet!"

Sanji glanced at the cleaning tools in his hand for a brief moment and added, "And, the lantern's still dirty!"

Franky rolled his eyes. "Don't get your knickers in a twist. I'll make sure it's in good quality when I'm finished." The cyborg said before he walked out of the room.

As Franky finally went out of their sight, another thought occured in Robin's head. "Luffy, have you celebrated Ace's birthday before?"

Luffy pursed his lips and hummed at the thought. "No, Ace didn't like birthdays." The captain said, crossing his legs before adding, "So, we didn't celebrate them."

"No, not that." Robin shook her head. "I mean..."

Luffy raised an eyebrow at her before comprehension dawned on him. "...oh. Um, not really. I was too busy training." Luffy stated sheepishly.

"Really?" Nami blinked. "You didn't have some free time?"

Luffy brought a hand to his chin and tried to remember. "I was free at night, but the only thing that I did was to look at the stars. That's all." Luffy shrugged before he lowered his head and stared at the floor. "I never actually celebrated it..."

The crew frowned when they heard Luffy's crestfallen tone and it took everything in them to not hug the young captain right then and there.

Sanji blew a puff of smoke before he strolled over to Luffy and gently placed a hand on his shoulder. "Well, you can now." The blonde said, giving the rubber boy a warm smile.

Luffy stared at the cook for a few seconds before the corners of his lips slowly turned up and Luffy nodded with his spirits back up high. "Yeah!"

Sanji smiled, his body somehow feeling light and refreshed when Luffy was his happy self again. Not that the chef minded, of course. He'd love to see that smile on his captain's face every day and he tend to keep it that way. Sanji was sure that the others felt the same, not even that stupid swordsman would complain.

Hey, that rhymed.

No sooner did the cook pondered on that than Franky suddenly came bursting into the room.

"Alright, I'm done!" The cyborg shouted, showcasing the newly-designed lantern in his big hands.

The Straw-Hats simultaneously turned around at Franky's shout. Luffy took a quick look at the lantern before he smiled as bright as the sun and his eyes turned into sparkling stars.

"WOAH, FRANKY! WHAT DID YOU DO?!" The captain cried out as he sprinted to the cyborg and didn't take his eyes off the object in his hand. "THE LANTERN'S AWESOME!"

Franky's grin got wider when he saw his captain's excitement. "I made it a bit special." The cyborg said as he showed Luffy the masterpiece. "This is for Ace, after all. And, he had the nickname 'Fire-Fist'. So, why not make the lantern look more like actual fire?"

In fact, the lantern seemed to be the very definition of fire itself. Almost the entire surface of the lantern was covered with small flame-shaped components and the paint on them gave the impression of it being real fire. Between every component was a small gap that was filled by a very detailed pattern that consisted of swirls, circles, and other small details.

Usopp's calligraphy seemed to be the same, the only difference was that the edges were now slightly swirly. And, Ace's name was repainted with the color of realistic fire – a mixture of dark red and bright orange.

 _It's just like the actual Mera-Mera no Mi_ , Robin thought.

"It's so cool!" Chopper cried out, amazed at yet another of Franky's amazing inventions.

Usopp bounded over to the cyborg with a similar awed expression. "It looks great, Franky!" He declared, examining every inch of the lantern.

As Usopp continued to look at it, a swell of gratitude swept over the sniper when he saw that none of Franky's adjustments replaced anything that Luffy and him had added. He could tell from how Franky left a bit of space between the original add-ons and the new ones that the cyborg had been very gentle.

"I got to admit." Sanji said as he approached them and whistled when he spotted the tiny yet intricate details on the lantern. "That's very nice, Franky."

"It looks wonderful." Robin admired, examining the lantern from where she stood behind them alongside Nami and Zoro.

"Yeah." Nami muttered, her eyes glistening in awe and a smile appeared on her face. "It is."

Zoro stood up from his crouched position and crossed his arms. He watched as Luffy and Chopper looked around the lantern in excitement, with Luffy accidentally climbing on Franky's face in the process - but Zoro didn't see the cyborg protest against the action. In fact, Franky seemed to be amused at his captain's antics.

Zoro stared at the cyborg's expression and smiled. That look wasn't unfamiliar for the Straw-Hats, since all of them had it at least once (including Zoro, but let's talk about that later).

If Zoro had to describe it, he'd say it was a mixture of fondness and adoration. All of the Straw-Hats had given this look to almost everyone on the ship, but they usually had it whenever there was Luffy. Zoro still couldn't put it to words nor did he know the logical reason behind it, but when Luffy was around, it was like a switch flipped inside of them and that look would automatically appear.

So when Zoro saw that look on Franky, he instantly knew what the cyborg's thinking.

Franky didn't say it (nor did he need to, in Zoro's opinion), but Zoro knew that the shipwright was extremely glad Luffy liked the adjustments he had made.

Not that Zoro could blame him. That lantern was worthy of every praise and now with the new add-ons, it was _definitely_ worthy for Ace. "Not bad." The swordsman said with a small smile.

Franky turned his head at Zoro's comment and noticed the knowing look on the first mate's face. In turn, the cyborg gave him a scowl and glanced at Luffy, who was too busy admiring the lantern to notice, before he turned back to the first mate and silently mouthed out, "Not. A. Word."

Zoro chuckled and merely gave him a nod. Another thing that wasn't unfamiliar to Zoro was how every single crew member told him to shut his mouth whenever he noticed them looking at Luffy with that expression.

Well, not that he was one to talk. Zoro glanced at Chopper's ears that were still red from how he pinched them so hard when the reindeer saw the first mate with the same look. Zoro almost felt sorry for the guy-..um...reindeer.

On cue, Chopper let out a small sneeze. "A-Achoo!"

Franky heard the sneeze and raised his eyebrow at the small doctor. "What's wrong, Chopper?" The shipwright asked. "You caught a cold?"

Chopper sniffled before he shook his head. "Nah, I think someone's talking about me."

All hints of concern vanished instantly and Franky blankly said, "Oh, okay."

Chopper pouted at the indifference the cyborg just showed. "Don't act so calm about it!"

Choosing to ignore the doctor, Franky glanced outside the window and noted that the sun was starting to set. Franky's lips slowly curled up and he swung Luffy off of his body ("Hey, what was that for, Franky? I was still looking at the lantern!") before exclaiming, "Alright, it's close to night-time! Everyone, go to the deck!"

Immediately, all of the annoyance poured out of Luffy's body and the captain quickly lit up like a shining star. "Yeah!" Luffy said, his grin growing wider and wider. Then, he turned to the rest of the crew and pumped his fist. "Let's go outside!"

"That sounds like a great idea." Nami smiled as she started to walk towards the door.

"Let's go!" Usopp said, walking with a light skip in his steps. "I can't wait to see the lantern fly to the sky!"

"Wait a minute!" Sanji roared as he stretched his arm forward and tugged onto Usopp's black hair. The sniper let out a squeak of both surprise and pain when he felt his hair being roughly pulled by Sanji. "O-Ow! What's your problem, Sanji?" Usopp asked, turning his head to the cook.

Sanji didn't look the least bit apologetic as he gripped the hair slightly tighter. "Eat your freaking dinner first!" Sanji gritted out, gesturing to the mostly untouched meals on the dining table. "It took half an hour to make all of this stuff, you stupid bastards!"

"Oh, I see." Robin said, finally acknowledging the food that was waiting for them. She had almost forgot about that. The young archeologist sent Sanji a sweet, regretful smile before saying, "I'm sorry, Sanji-kun."

Instantly, Sanji's face reddened and the cook's scowl changed to a smile and his eyes turned into pink hearts. "N-No, it's fine Robin-chwan!" Sanji smiled as he let go of Usopp's hair and walked over to where Robin was. "You can do whatever you want!"

"Do we really have to eat first?" Franky asked the blonde. "I mean, we won't be long at all!"

As those words reached Sanji's ears, his demeanour changed again and a dark aura encircled the cook. "No." Sanji muttered before he quickly walked over to the door and stood in front of it with his arms crossed. "You are forbidden to go outside this door until you eat your dinner!"

Luffy slumped and let out a childish pout at the now blocked exit. "Sanji's mean..."

Sanji turned around at Luffy's mumble and pointed his index finger at the rubber boy. "Especially _you_ , shitty captain. You haven't even _touched_ your dinner yet." Sanji stated with a heated glare.

The crew blinked and gazed at Luffy's meal lying uneaten on the table. For the entire time, they were too busy taking in that today was Ace's birthday to realise the fact that Luffy hadn't eaten _at all_. Not even one bite had been taken by the captain all afternoon.

Now, they fully understood why Sanji didn't let them leave the room. While Usopp had a snack once in a while when they had been working, Luffy didn't even drink.

"Oh yeah." Luffy glanced at his untouched meat, not knowing (or rather, forgetting) that it was dinner time. But for some reason, he wasn't feeling quite hungry at the moment (despite how the meat seemed to be very delicious). "Well, I can eat that later." Luffy shrugged lightly before adding, "I want to see the lantern fly first!"

If Sanji was surprised at Luffy's earlier statement, he didn't show it. "Meat doesn't last forever, Luffy." Sanji gave him a disapproving scowl as he stood more firmly before the only exit. "So, you're not leaving until you eat your food."

If it was anyone else, then Sanji wouldn't make it into such a big problem. He'd probably ask them to finish at least most of their food and case closed. But since it's _Luffy_ , his rubber boy captain that practically inhales everything edible in sight and has an endless pit for a stomach, Sanji _had_ to confront him.

The blonde understood that Luffy only wanted to release the lantern he made for his big brother's birthday as soon as possible, but Sanji just couldn't let him do that with an empty stomach. He would never let anyone ( _especially_ Luffy) do anyhing while being hungry, despite a few things Sanji had said in the past.

Sanji glanced at Luffy and inspected him up and down. On the outside, Luffy seemed fine. There were a few smears of paint here and there, but that was it. Nothing of Luffy's appearance alone seemed out of the ordinary.

Or most people would think.

But, the Straw-Hats were known to be keen observers and they perceive all the little things in almost everyone. So, Sanji could see beyond the obvious. Like the tiniest hint of dark bags under Luffy's eyes, how he seemed just a touch thinner than usual, and how his stomach was almost paper flat.

Even though those things made Sanji worry, he knew that it was normal for Luffy to get them. The captain had been working non-stop from afternoon until dinner on that lantern, after all.

That only made Sanji's resolve to feed Luffy stronger.

He already forgot Ace's birthday. He already couldn't protect Luffy from what happened at Sabaody _and_ Marineford. He already missed the opportunity to feed Luffy with his cooking for _two whole years_.

He already _wasn't there_ when Luffy needed him most.

At this point, if making sure Luffy has a full stomach was the only thing that he could do for his captain, then by all means Sanji would do it for the rest of eternity.

Besides, even if (keyword: _if_ ) Sanji let Luffy celebrate Ace's birthday with an empty stomach, the blonde was sure that Ace would roast him alive in the afterlife.

" _I'm sorry for roasting you."_ Ace would say with a smile. _"But, you made Luffy go hungry."_ Ace would say, _still_ with a smile.

Yeah, he'd definitely do that.

"But, Sanjiii...!" Luffy whined with a pout, snapping the cook away from his train of thought.

Sanji scowled even deeper and put his hand down quite roughly on Luffy's head. "Listen up, you shitty captain." Sanji murmured, looking directly at Luffy's eyes. The latter stopped whining and in return, stared at Sanji's eyes as well, awaiting his cook to make the first move.

"Even if you want to celebrate your big brother's birthday, you know that I can _never_ let you go while being hungry. So, take a seat and eat your dinner. Don't worry, the lantern's not going anywhere until you finish your food. Right now, your health comes first. I'm sure Ace would say the same thing." Sanji said to his captain.

Or rather, what he wanted to say.

The blonde vaguely smirked. But, Luffy wasn't the type for those kind of words. He was more of a blunt, straightforward person than a touching, emotional one. That was what made Luffy unique, he presumed. Personally, the cook preferred to say that instead, but Sanji wasn't in the position to choose.

So Sanji focused back to the present with his scowl still in place, and just went with his usual words. "I don't like wasting food, so eat your meal or so help me I'm not going to give you any meat for a week!"

Well, that basically summed it up.

Besides, the growing look of dread on Luffy's face was plainly hilarious, since the threat wasn't a serious one in the first place (to some people, it wasn't even a threat at all). "AHH, NOOO! ANYTHING BUT THAT!"

As Sanji witnessed Luffy rush over to his dinner and inhale it through his rubber mouth, the blonde let out a small sigh of relief (that he would later deny) and sent his young captain a tender smile.

If he saw the rest of the crew giving him knowing looks through the corner of his eye, he didn't say a word.

And if he saw a certain swordsman giving him a smirk as well but somehow got a frying pan on the head a few seconds later, well...that wasn't his fault either.

His hands did that. Not him.

* * *

"Guys, hurry up!" Luffy shouted as he opened the door and ran towards the open deck. "I can't wait any longer!"

"Alright, alright! We're coming, geez..." Nami muttered behind the teenager, walking through the door in a much slower pace than her captain, with the rest of the crew doing the same.

"Where should we release the lantern?" Chopper asked, looking around the deck for the perfect place.

Usopp brought his hand to his chin and examined his surroundings for a few moments before his eyes landed on a particular spot. "How about at the center over there?"

"Great idea, Usopp!" Franky said as he bounded over to Usopp and gave him a pat in the back. "That would make a nice spot for the lantern to take off."

"Franky, lanterns don't _take off_."

"Well, they do in my head!"

"Hey, Usopp! Franky!" The two men turned around at Luffy's shout. Apparently, Luffy went ahead of them when they were talking as the captain was already standing on the grass lawn, precisely on the center of the ship. "Come over here!" Luffy shouted, waving his arms at the two.

Franky smiled at the young teenager and did exactly what he was told. "Yeah, I'm coming!" The cyborg said as he quickly walked to where Luffy was.

Behind him, Usopp shook his head at the sight of Luffy's excited (and impatient) expression before following behind Franky.

"Give me a break. He can't wait for even a second, can he?" Usopp muttered under his breath with an annoyed tone, although the silhouette of a fond smile could be seen on the his face.

When Usopp and Franky reached the designated spot, the cyborg immediately sauntered over to Luffy and held out the lantern towards the captain. "Here, Luffy." Franky said with a proud grin.

Luffy's eyes lit up again when he spotted the sky lantern in Franky's hands. "Thanks, Franky!" The captain said before he grabbed the object and continued to stare at it with awe.

"Is everyone here yet?" Zoro asked, putting his hand on the hilts of his swords.

Brook glanced around and let out a small hum. "I think so." The skeleton said as he caught sight of every crew member. "I don't see anyone missing."

"Good." Robin noted. The archeologist turned her head upwards and stared at the stars shining above them before adding, "Then, we're ready to release the lantern into the sky."

"Wait!" Luffy said suddenly. The captain looked around and stopped when he spotted his blonde cook a few feet away. "Sanji, light the lantern!" Luffy said, gesturing to the lantern in his grip.

Said person blinked before he let out a small chuckle. "Okay." Sanji said as he exhaled a puff of smoke and sauntered over to where the raven-haired teenager was. He placed his right hand into his left pocket and quickly pulled out his lighter.

"Hold still, Luffy." Sanji mumbled as he lit the lighter in his hand and moved closer to the candle inside the sky lantern. Luffy nodded and held the lantern without moving an inch.

When the fire finally ignited on the candle and the lantern started to glow a bright orange colour, a satisfied smile emerged on both Luffy and Sanji's face and the latter took a few steps back to enjoy the sight.

Even though Franky had already made it stunning with his configurations, now with the candle lit, the lantern looked even more astonishing.

"It's beautiful." Nami said in awe, the fire reflecting in her brown eyes.

Robin's eyes softened and her smile grew. "It certainly is."

As the rest of the crew continue to enjoy this moment and engrave it in their memories, a thought suddenly appeared in Brook's mind and the musician quickly grabbed his precious violin before asking, "Luffy-san, do you want me to play a song?"

The captain broke out of his half-trance on the lantern before turning to Brook and giving him a nod and a grin. "Yeah, go ahead Brook."

"Yohohoho! As you wish." Then, the ex-Rumbar Pirate proceeded to play the violin to the rhythm of, in his opinion, the most suitable song for this situation. As the melody flowed into the air and became one with the night breeze, Luffy slowly brought his hand over the lantern's surface and rubbed it gently. As Luffy continued to stare at it, a sudden realisation washed over him.

This was the first time he was _actually_ celebrating Ace's birthday.

Back when Ace had first sailed out to sea, Luffy celebrated Ace's birthday by going to the cliff and shouting out to the heavens that he was going to catch up to him someday. He did this for the next two years, and when the third year came around, Luffy remembered him shouting that he'd meet Ace out there soon.

But after... _Marineford_ (he didn't want to go any further than that), Luffy could honestly say that he was at a loss. After what had happened, what he had went through, what he had _seen_ ; Luffy didn't know if he actually wanted to celebrate Ace's birthday anymore.

He knew that was a foolish statement (he punched himself for even _thinking_ that thought), but at the same time, a part of him agreed.

Ace was dead.

Because of his own (stupid, _stupid_ , _**stupid**_ ) carelessness two years ago, Ace is now _gone_.

Why would Luffy celebrate Ace's birthday if his brother wouldn't be there to see it? Why would he if it would make him remember the feeling of Ace's grip slowly loosening and seeing his ( _last_ ) big brother fall face flat on the cold ground?

Luffy wasn't ready to remember all of that yet, he wasn't ready to acknowledge the fact that Ace was gone because of _him_. Which is why he personally didn't want to celebrate Ace's birthday that year.

That was what he had thought, but Rayleigh encouraged him to do it anyway. Because even though you could never bring back the ones you had lost, it didn't mean that hey weren't nearby. ("Even though Ace's...not here, you didn't think that'll stop him from watching over his little brother, did you?")

So in the end, Luffy did celebrate Ace's birthday. But like what he had told his crew, he didn't do much. He only laid down on the grass and gazed at the night sky. He tried to say a few things (updates about himself, the training he was doing, _anything_ ), but no sound came from his mouth. Unlike a few years ago, he couldn't shout out that he was going to catch up to Ace. Because, well...he's gone.

Somewhere along the line, a few stray tears might've leaked out of his eyes. A few hundred sobs might've came out from his mouth. And, a few thousand apologies might've poured out with it.

Pretty much, the same thing happened the year after that. Though, he wasn't as much of a mess that time. Throughout the years, Luffy learned to just accept it.

But now that he was finally with his friends again and he wasn't _alone_ , Luffy wasn't going to do the same thing again. This time, he was going to celebrate his brother's birthday properly.

Earlier this morning, Luffy decided to apologise to Ace properly. He was going to tell Ace the things he had wanted to say years ago. And this time, he was going to do it right.

 _But,_ Luffy thought as he casted a quick glance at his crew before him. _Would they mind if I do that?_

Zoro noticed the swift glance from the raven-haired teenager and the swordsman could feel Luffy hesitating slightly. Zoro sighed, his captain could be so doubtful sometimes. "If you want to say something, go ahead."

Luffy looked up and blinked. "What?"

Robin chuckled at Luffy's surprised face and she gave the young teenager a knowing smile. "It's okay, Luffy. You can say anything you want."

"Really?" Luffy asked, widening his eyes.

"That's right." Before he knew it, Usopp stood in front of the teenager and placed a hand on his left shoulder. "Take as much time as you need."

Luffy stared at his sniper's sincere expression before turning to look at everyone else. All of the Straw-Hats had smiles on their faces, and none of them seemed to have even the slightest hint of disapproval.

Simultaneously, Luffy came to another realisation. What he had thought of a few minutes ago along with the resolve he had settled upon, it was apparent that all of them knew.

And, all of them followed suit.

A warm content feeling blossomed inside of Luffy's chest and the boy gave his crew a grateful smile. "Okay."

Usopp and the rest of the crew nodded, and the sniper stepped back to stand with the others. Being given his space, Luffy glanced at the lantern once more before he turned around to face the ocean.

Luffy turned his head upwards to look at the stars. Now that he knew that his crew didn't mind listening, Luffy had no more reason to hesitate any longer. With that in mind, the captain slowly drew an intake of breath before gently saying, "Hey, Ace."

Almost immediately, Luffy's smile softened slightly. It had been a long time since he last said Ace's name out loud, even longer since he said it in front of his friends. "You would've been...twenty two today huh? Guess what, I'm now nineteen!" The captain grinned and let out his signature chuckle before adding, "I would've catched up to you by now, since today I'm a whole lot stronger."

Zoro frowned as he knew what Luffy meant by those words. A glance to his left showed that the others weren't fooled either. Despite the cheerful tone Luffy used, it was clear that doing this wasn't an easy task for him.

True to their word, Luffy's smile strained vaguely and the boy showed a glimpse of sadness in his face. But, Luffy swiftly shook his head and his smile lit up again when he thought of another thing that made him happy. "My crew's stronger too! They're now able to do a lot of awesome things!" The teenager exclaimed with a wide grin.

No sooner did he say that than a chorus of embarrassed chuckles was heard behind him. With a glance out of the corner of his eye, Luffy could see all of his friends, minus Zoro, Sanji and Robin, scratching the back of their heads with a sheepish look.

"W-What are you talking about, Luffy?" Nami said sheepishly with a small tint of blush evident on her cheeks.

"A-Ah, no we're not!" Usopp mumbled with an embarrassed smiled as he waved his hand dismissively.

Franky nodded, with the cyborg putting both of his arms on his metal hips. "W-We're not _that_ SUPER!"

Chopper wiggled his body and his furry face was as red as a tomato. "Y-You bastard, you don't need to say that!"

"You guys are funny!" Luffy laughed as he saw his friends' reactions behind him. But, he really meant what he said. When they had reunited after their two-year training, his crew had gained a bunch of strong techniques and they'd gotten physically powerful as well.

And since this was his chance to tell Ace about them, like hell Luffy was going to pass it up.

But unfortunately, he couldn't tell Ace _everything_ on the spot. That would take at least two days to finish (or in Luffy language, ten meals). As the rubber boy thought of a way to quickly describe all of his friends to Ace without taking up too much time (for eating food), an idea popped up inside his head and Luffy smiled. "Zoro's the swordsman."

Said man blinked, clearly taken aback at the statement. But, Luffy didn't stop there. "Usopp's the sniper. Sanji's the cook. Nami's the navigator. Chopper's the doctor. Robin's the archeologist. Franky's the shipwright. And, Brook's the musician." The teenager noted, gazing at the stars once more.

The Straw-Hats stopped their fussing and averted their attention back towards their captain as they were intrigued by his choice of words.

Luffy felt their curious stares behind him and couldn't help but chuckle. "All of them are really great at what they do and all of them are second to none."

Luffy's grin grew to a normally impossible width and his eyes shone with sincere admiration as he summed all of his wholehearted feelings towards his loyal friends into one sentence. "They're the best crew mates you can ask for!"

A few moments of silence washed over the deck. Luffy exhaled a puff of air, feeling like a small weight was lifted off of him. He knew that his friends were already aware of what he thought of them; it was like an unspoken thing between everyone on board. Even so, he wanted to tell Ace anyway. His big brother would get pissed if he didn't.

Suddenly, a small sniffle broke Luffy out of his thoughts. The captain turned around and was surprised when he saw almost all of his friends crying. "Guys, what's wrong?"

"N-Nothing...!" Usopp sniffled, fat tears streaming down his face. The sniper bit his trembling lip before he gave Luffy an earnest smile. "W-We're just...really happy!"

"Whaa...! Luffy...!" Chopper bawled out loud.

"I love you, Captain!" Franky shouted, not caring of the small growing puddle of tears below him.

"H-Honestly..." Nami mumbled with a small smile as she wiped the tears off of her face. "You're really an idiot, you know that?"

"Shitty captain." Sanji said under his breath, looking away from Luffy's eyes while covering his red face. "Saying weird stuff like that..."

"L-Luffy-san..." Brook muttered with a blank expression (since he's a skeleton). But, his body was shaking in the slightest and tears came raining down from his empty eye sockets. "I-I really don't have the words!"

Luffy furrowed his eyebrows and gave them a bemused look. "But, why are you crying all of a sudden?"

Robin giggled quietly and turned towards Luffy with a reassuring (and happy) smile. "Don't worry, Luffy. It's just like what Usopp said."

"Yeah." Zoro nodded casually, although a _very_ prideful smirk was etched on his face. "They're just really delighted, that's all."

Sanji snorted. "Like you're not, Moss Head."

Zoro quickly gave the cook a fierce glare. "What did you say, Dartbrow?"

"I said," This time, it was Sanji's turn to smirk. "Like you're not happy at all, hearing that from your captain."

Zoro's eye twitched and the swordsman made his glare even more fierce. "One more word and you're dead."

Despite the threat, Sanji's smirk didn't falter. Instead, it slowly grew when he noticed the _tiniest_ tint of a blush across Zoro's face.

But instead of embarrassing the swordsman in front of the crew, Sanji kept quiet and merely let out a chuckle. "Suit yourself, Moss Head."

In front of the duo, Luffy laughed. "I don't quite get it, but you guys are funny!" The captain said for the second time that day.

Zoro frowned and his eye was still twitching slightly, but he didn't push the matter any further. "Oi, Luffy." The first mate said, focusing back to his captain. "You were saying?"

"Oh, right!" Luffy said, remembering their purpose there. The teenager turned back to the ocean and thought back of what he was going to say. Now that Luffy already told Ace about his crew, nothing could stall _it_ anymore. Luffy couldn't avoid _not_ talking about the topic he was dreading the entire time.

In actual truth, Luffy didn't want to talk about it at all. He preferred it to be left alone and not shared with anyone but himself. But he knew that wasn't a good thing to do, and apparently Rayleigh too, since the man had advised him about it a year ago.

" _Don't bottle everything up, Luffy. Let it out. A person can only hold in so many secrets."_

Luffy knew that his teacher was right. He didn't want to have a lot of secrets, and he didn't want to hide anything from his crew either. And, something told him that Ace probably won't approve of his 'habit' as well.

 _Well, it's now or never._ Luffy thought, gripping the lantern a bit tighter before saying,"Ace..."

Almost immediately, the crew went silent at the name and some of them wiped their tears before waiting for Luffy to continue. The rubber boy was quiet as his mind quickly played back a few memories from the past.

Memories of a freckled little boy with a bottle of stolen sake in his hands. Memories of a grown man with the Whitebeard mark on his bare back. Memories of the same man giving him a small sheet of paper in the desert scenery.

Memories of how he died in his arms.

Luffy's eyes glazed over and he slowly opened his mouth to form the words he had wanted to say ever since he woke up after the war – _hell_ – two years ago. "I'm sorry I couldn't save you."

The Straw-Hats' eyes went wide instantaneously and a few gasps echoed in the air. For a few minutes, none of them moved a muscle. Those mere six words stunned them to the core.

Usopp stared at his captain's back with a bewildered expression and his mouth opened and closed like a fish out of water. Another silent moment passed and the sniper quickly brought himself back to his senses before subconsciously taking a step forward with a disapproving glint in his eyes. "Oi Luffy, wha-!?"

But, he didn't get that far since Zoro suddenly put his arm in front of Usopp, halting the pirate on his tracks. Usopp was startled by the action and he turned to the first mate with a puzzled and angry look on his face ( _Luffy needed someone to tell him that he's wrong,_ _so utterly_ _ **wrong**_ _so get out of the way or I'll-_ ), but he was silenced almost instantly by Zoro's mute yet intense glare ( _ **not yet**_ ) thrown at him.

Usopp met Zoro's glare for a few more seconds before he gritted his teeth and hesitantly stepped back to his spot. Beside him, Nami and Chopper fidgeted on their feet, most likely itching to go to Luffy as well. The swordsman noticed the subtle movements and gave them a fierce stare. The two of them flinched a bit, but obeyed nonetheless.

A few feet before them, Luffy still held the lantern with a tight grip, before realizing that he was being silent for too long and that Ace would probably punch him for saying it like that. Luffy blinked at his creative imagination before he slowly put on a sheepish smile. "You're probably babbling right now, so I'm going to rephrase that."

The Straw-Hats almost sighed in relief, thinking that Luffy must've said the sentence wrong and it wasn't intended like the way they thought it was. But, Zoro and Sanji weren't easily convinced. They had been told of what happened at the war two years ago by their own teachers and in their knowledge, what Luffy said wasn't actually...wrong.

Oblivious to their train of thought, Luffy merely continued. "Technically, I did save you." Luffy mumbled, recalling the chain of events that happened that day. "I managed to get to the execution platform and Mr. 3 unlocked your cuffs. Then, you used your cool powers to get us out of there."

Suddenly, a thought emerged inside Luffy's mind, making the captain turn around towards his crew. Just like he thought, all of his friends stared at him with puzzled and surprised expressions, including Zoro and Sanji. It occurred to Luffy that until now, he hadn't talked about what happened at the war to his friends at all. They were so busy having adventures, it slipped through the captain's mind.

"I haven't told you guys about this before, have I?" Luffy asked.

"Y-Yeah..." Usopp replied sheepishly, still quite shocked that Luffy finally told them a small piece of what he had went through.

Luffy's face was blank for a few seconds before he gave them a small grin. "Well, you can listen if you want."

Luffy said nothing when he recognised the comprehension dawning on his friends' faces. The captain didn't want to drag them into everything he does (he'd be a selfish captain otherwise), so it was better to give his crew the right to choose. They were pretty close to the galley door, after all. Just a few steps and they'd be inside.

But as Luffy waited for his crew mates to make their decision, his vision was suddenly blocked and the rubber boy felt a hard flick inflicted on his forehead. "Ouch!" Luffy winced, rubbing his forehead with his fingers.

"Idiot, what do you mean by that?" Nami said with an angry vein on her head as she retracted her hand from Luffy's face. "We're staying, whether you like it or not."

It took a few moments for Luffy to register what she said, and when he did, a surprised expression was etched on his face. "Are you sure?"

"Of course. All of us are." The navigator replied with a 'duh' look, gesturing to the others behind her. True to her word, everyone stood rooted to the spot with not even the slightest visible intention of leaving. Luffy could practically feel their auras stubbornly saying, "No."

Nami gave her captain a fond smile before saying, "So just say whatever you want, 'kay?" Luffy chuckled and his face broke into another wide grin. "Okay!" Nami nodded and went back to her spot.

The raven-haired boy held the lantern up to his chest before another thought suddenly occurred to him and Luffy's face went blank. "Wait, what was I going to say again?"

The crew, except for Robin, immediately fell face flat on the deck, with most of them twitching their eyes in annoyance.

"YOU IDIOT!" All of them simultaneously screamed. Luffy just laughed while scratching the back of his head before his eyes suddenly lit up and Luffy said, "Ah, I remember now! After that, we fought off some marines and started running out of there."

The Straw-Hats merely sighed at their captain's behaviour before they stood up and prepared to listen to the rest of Luffy's story (thought it was more like a trip down memory lane for more than some).

Luffy turned his head towards the sky and added, "Then when we were going to the ships, Akainu said something that threw you off." Luffy scrunched his eyebrows and searched his mind for a few moments to remember exactly _what_ the admiral had said to Ace. "Something about Whitebeard being a loser, but I forgot the rest."

That information specifically intrigued the crew, as they didn't expect Akainu to be the one that made the first move. Though after the last part, it didn't seem too unusual anymore since they could picture the previous admiral doing that to provoke Ace.

"Then, you got angry and charged at Akainu." Luffy said, his mouth set on a small but firm frown. The captain could still remember Ace's enraged face as clear as if it was yesterday. However it was pretty reasonable, since Akainu had insulted someone precious to Ace.

"But..." Luffy mumbled, gripping the lantern even tighter. "Magma's hotter than fire. So, he managed to burn your hand." Luffy finished, fully aware of the crew's wide eyes behind him.

"I was about to drag you back to the ships, but suddenly my body couldn't move. I don't know if it was because I've gone _way_ past my limit or it was because of Iva-chan's hormone powers wearing off." Luffy remembered how the pain and fatigue caught up to him and how his body wouldn't listen to him when all he wanted was to move and help Ace. The helpless feeling he had felt back then was still fresh in his mind.

Meanwhile, Sanji's head perked up at the familiar name. Even though Luffy didn't clearly say if it was his two-year mentor, but Sanji had spent enough time with the rubber idiot to translate his language into actual words.

But, he was also taken aback by Luffy admitting that he had gone past his limit. Usually, the teenager wouldn't say those kind of stuff without a fight. But if what had happened made Luffy admit it so easily...Sanji wasn't sure if he wanted to know any more.

As the memories resurfaced in Luffy's mind, he could feel his walls slowly crumbling down as he knew the hard part was getting closer. "Then, I saw your vivre card on the ground. At the time, the paper was back to normal. It wasn't burning like earlier anymore."

Nami's breath hitched and the navigator vaguely registered bringing her hand over her mouth. Before she knew it, the memory from Thriller Bark came into her mind.

" _Is the holder of this card someone special to you?" Laura asked Luffy nervously._

" _Yeah, it's my big brother's!" Luffy grinned._

 _Something in Laura shattered when she saw that happy grin. The pink-haired pirate bit her lip with a somewhat pained expression before she slowly revealed, "I might be wrong, but the holder of this card's life...is slowly vanishing."_

Just thinking about that memory and what happened shortly afterwards made Nami's heart shatter into pieces. If only they had convinced Luffy to go and check on Ace, then he wouldn't-! Nami's eyes teared up at the thought and the girl shook her head, not capable of finishing that sentence.

"I was about to grab it when you suddenly cried out my name." Nami was broken out of her train of thought when Luffy continued. The boy furrowed his eyebrows when he recalled a certain detail from the memory. "Now that I think about it, you sounded...scared. I've never heard you shout like that before."

It was a rare thing for Luffy to hear Ace so frightened. Usually, Ace was the big brother who wasn't scared of anything or anyone. Yet when it involved his little brothers, he was the total opposite.

 _Well,_ Luffy smiled as his crew came into mind, _I can't argue with that_.

Luffy mentally chuckled at both of their protective instincts before he remembered what happened next. Immediately, Luffy's smile was replaced with a scowl. "But when I looked up, I saw Akainu charging at me."

The Straw-Hats tensed almost instantly at the name. Their faces were contorted with deep scowls and more than some of them gritted their teeth in seething anger, especially those who knew some of the story. Zoro's fingers twitched as the swordsman yearned to unsheathe his swords. But he wasn't the only one, as Nami already had her hands on her Clima-Tact along with Usopp holding his slingshot.

Luffy was quiet while his mind played back the slow-motion moment of Akainu launching towards him with his fist covered in magma. Instead of acting down, though, Luffy sighed and let out an almost childish pout. "That wasn't fair, you know. I couldn't move at all and he decided to attack me instead."

Then, Luffy's shoulders slumped slightly and the captain acted like he had been told by Sanji to wait for food (a tragic thing, really). "I'm still a bit angry at that."

Zoro mentally scoffed. 'A bit' was the understatement of the century.

"But anyway, he came charging at me with his magma...fist?" Luffy scrunched up his face at the weird term. "It sounds strange but let's go with that!"

Usually, the crew would've sighed at their captain's simpleness. But, they ignored that and concentrated on what Luffy was implying. They took in what Luffy said and tried to picture it happening inside their minds. The resulting image absolutely horrified them. This made the Straw-Hats start to get worried, but they knew that the worst part had yet to come.

"All I could do was stare at the fist coming at me. Like I said, I couldn't move. Even if I could, I doubt I'll be able to dodge that." Luffy mumbled with a low voice. The captain lowered his head with his bangs covering his eyes before he eventually shrugged. "Either way, I was like a sitting duck."

At this point, the crew's anxiety levels rose drastically from level one to level ten hundred million. All of them fidgeted restlessly in their positions and beads of nervous sweat started to gather on their faces. What Luffy had told them until now always made most – if not, all – of them silently picture the scene inside their heads. And as always, the sight wasn't pretty.

But all of that was nothing compared to what they were listening right now. The Straw-Hats were almost scared of picturing Luffy being so _vulnerable_ against the marine admiral, Akainu.

Just imagining Luffy lying there in a crouched position as the boy slowly looked up to see his reflection on Akainu's magma-covered fist was. _Absolutely._ _**Horrifying**_. It wasn't that they had little faith in Luffy, but how did their captain possibly dodge _that_?

Luffy's eyes remained hidden under his bangs and the rim of his straw hat. A small frown was set upon his lips as he replayed the one memory he would _never_ forget. "But then, it didn't hit me."

That statement broke the restless crew out of their thoughts. Then, the Straw-Hats averted their gaze towards their young captain before them. Somehow in the pit of their stomach, the crew knew what Luffy was going to say next.

It wasn't a gut feeling or an instinct, they just _knew_.

And all of them silently prayed to every God they could think of that _no, it can't be true_ and _please, don't let it be what I think it is_ as well as _I beg of you, don't make Luffy say it, don't make Luffy say it, don't make him-._

But their prayers were halted when Luffy quietly muttered, "Akainu's fist didn't get to hit me because...you suddenly stood between us. And since you were in front of me, Akainu hit you instead. His fist went right through your chest." Luffy paused for a seemingly _long_ moment for the crew before adding, "Now that I think about it, it also went through the Old Man's Moustache mark on your back."

And just like that, the Straw-Hats felt like they were the _worst_ crew on the face of this planet.

This was the breaking point of their captain's story. This was the absolute worst part of them all. This was why Luffy had suffered for two long years and they weren't there to _help_. The crew had thought that the image of a vulnerable Luffy in front of Akainu was the worst.

They had never been more wrong in their lives.

That mere conception stood no chance against a mental picture of not _just_ a vulnerable Luffy, but a vulnerable Luffy staring in utter shock at his loving big brother _who had_ _ **taken the hit**_ _for him._

The same big brother that he was supposed to _save_.

The Straw-Hats were too caught up with that thought, they didn't realise that most of their faces felt wet.

Meanwhile, Luffy just continued to frown. He felt tears gathering in his eyes, but Luffy refused to let them fall. He promised Ace that he'd be ( _more and more, more and more...m-more and more, more and more)_ stronger, after all.

The thought brought a sad smile upon Luffy's face. "Stupid Ace...why did you do that? You knew that Akainu's magma was hotter than your fire," The boy's hands started to tremble and the captain gritted his teeth before quietly saying, "yet you still..."

The crew's heads perked up, finally snapping out of their downhill guilt trip. But, it was temporarily replaced by overflowing worry for their young captain. Never had they ever heard Luffy sound so sad, so lost, so...broken.

Luffy noticed that he was shaking and quickly stopped. Then, he willed his mind to continue playing the vivid memory inside his head. "After that, you collapsed." Luffy stated, recalling the slow-motion moment when Ace's legs finally gave out.

"I caught you and asked for help, but you said it was useless." Luffy positioned the lantern in his grip so that his left hand was holding it while the captain stared blankly at the palm of his right. Even now, he could still feel the moisture from the blood ( _Ace's_ blood) when he had held Ace's bare back. "You said, ' _He already fried my insides_ '."

Chopper's eyes widened in horror at the statement and he brought his hooves to his mouth to hold back a sob. When he had been training back at Torino Kingdom for two years, Chopper developed an ability to easily imagine how a wound would look like with just a few small hints. At first, the reindeer was proud to have this ability, he could react faster and could cure the patient quicker as well.

But right now, he desperately wished he hadn't.

Chopper already saw Ace's body in the newspaper; some low-life reporter had taken a picture of it without any guilt whatsoever. For days, he examined the picture and guessed what had happened that gave Ace such a horrifying injury.

It was obvious that Ace was hit by something big and it was a lot more powerful than his fire. Vital organs were damaged, a big part of the skin was peeled off and the damage was so severe, the blood cells weren't able to stop the bleeding. Those were the main things Chopper had been able to figure out by looking at the picture.

But now that he was told the full story by Luffy, Chopper didn't know if he could hold it together any longer. Not only was Ace stabbed by Akainu's magma fist, but most of his organs were _burned_ from the hazardous heat as well. It was worst than what Chopper had thought, and the reindeer was having trouble holding back his tears.

Luffy's eyes softened sadly as he said, "That must've hurt a lot, huh?"

Simultaneously, the tears streaming down on Chopper's face intensified and the small doctor just wanted to _wail_.

The others weren't faring much better either.

Nami and Usopp were shaking as they tried to overcome their tears, but the salty liquid just continuously poured out of their eyes. Franky had lowered his sunglasses at some point during Luffy's story and was now gritting his teeth as an endless river of tears flowed down his cheeks.

Brook had stopped playing his violin a few minutes ago, since he couldn't bear to play any music when his captain was suffering right in front of him. And no music would _ever_ be enough to convoy all of the pain inside Luffy's heart.

Sanji, Robin and Zoro were the only ones that weren't crying, but it was clear that the trio was effected by what they had heard as well. Sanji's blonde bangs covered his eyes and the cook balled his fists so hard until his knuckles were white, while his cigarette laid on the cold deck; forgotten. Robin gazed at Luffy with a concerned yet understanding expression. And, Zoro merely rested his hand on the hilt of his sword with an impassive look.

But despite most of the Straw-Hats' sheer desire to cry out to the heavens _(Why...? Why did you do this to **Luffy**_ _, of all people!?),_ all of them were absolutely silent.

Those who cried didn't let out a single sob while those who held it in didn't make a peep. The whole crew composed themselves to be completely noiseless, in order to give Luffy no distruptions of any kind and and so that their rubber idiot of a captain wouldn't get distracted by the sound of their sobs.

But unbeknownst to them, Luffy's smile turned more genuine. The raven-haired boy had known his crew's intention from the minute he sensed their sadness with his Haki and was, honestly, touched. Although he was pretty sad himself, the feeling of gratitude and pride inside him almost overrode it all.

With the newfound warmth inside his chest, Luffy resumed. "Ace...I'm sorry I couldn't save you." The captain was beginning to lose count on how many times he had said that already; Ace was probably annoyed as well. And he should probably stop saying that, if the sound of the _quietest_ of sniffles behind him were an indication.

"But..." Luffy paused for a moment before a bright grin slowly emerged on his face and he said the one thing he had wanted to say from the _very_ beginning. "Thanks for saving me! I wouldn't be here today with my crew if it weren't for you."

When those words reached their ears, the Straw-Hats' tears simultaneously halted as a growing realisation came into their minds.

If Ace didn't interfere, Luffy would've died. If he hadn't stood in the way, the Straw-Hats would've lost not only their captain, but their _hope_.

Luffy was the reason all of them were here in the first place. He was the one who held out his hand and gave all of them a home. He was the one who lighted up the ship with a wide grin and his signature chuckle. He was their most precious treasure.

And to think that they could've lost Luffy two years ago without knowing it, the Straw-Hats just wanted to bring Ace back to life for a few minutes (if not, then at least give them _seconds_ ) to express how very, _very_ , _**very**_ thankful they were to him for rescuing Luffy.

"I'm still mad that you took the hit for me." The crew looked up to see Luffy glance sideways and they could hear him mumble a quiet ' _stupid brother'_ before his smile came back and he said, "But, thank you!"

Hearing the genuine gratitude in their captain's voice, the Straw-Hats couldn't help but smile and agree.

"You probably don't like to remember any more of these memories, so I'll stop now."

But of course, the moment was ruined by Luffy's own selflessness.

 _Idiot, shouldn't you ask the same to yourself?_ Sanji thought as his eyebrow twitched in annoyance (at the fact that his captain almost _never_ thinks about himself first).

Luffy, on the other hand, held out the lantern in his hands and raised it into the night sky. "Anyway, I made this for you! It's cool, right?" The captain beamed, disclosing every corner of the lantern with pride. "Franky made it look awesome! And, Usopp's glee-graphy looks great!"

"I-It's _calligraphy_ , you idiot." Usopp said with a choked voice and a half-smile, wiping his continuous tears while doing so.

"That's what I said." Luffy said, glancing at the sniper with a blank look.

But before anyone could protest against that, Luffy's eyes lit up like he suddenly remembered something important. "Oh yeah! Everyone helped out as well, Ace!" The rubber boy turned around and held out the lantern again with a wide grin. "So, think of it as a gift from us to you! Shishishi!"

"Waaahhh! Luffy-broooo! Ace-broooo!" Franky outright bawled, unable to hold back his tears anymore. The shipwright had never been so _proud_ to have make something in his life. He'd built hundreds of ships and inventions, but none of them could compare to the lantern he made for two loving brothers who, in his opinion, deserved the entire _world_. "I love you guuuyyysss!"

Zoro let out a (yet again) _very_ proud smirk before his eyes seemed to harden. "Luffy."

"Hm?" Luffy turned around at his unofficial first mate's voice. "What is it, Zoro?"

"Mind if I say something?" Zoro asked as he took a few steps forward.

Luffy furrowed his eyebrows, puzzled to why Zoro would ask that and what would he say. But, the captain nodded nonetheless. "Sure, go ahead."

Zoro stopped beside the teenager and the swordsman gave a nod in return. "The others are too busy weeping to say this," He took a glance at his still crying crew mates before adding, "So I'm going to spit it out myself."

"Others?" Luffy tilted his head.

"Shut up, shitty swordsman." Sanji said as he retrieved another cigarette from his pocket and placed it inside his mouth, with his hands trembling in the slightest.

The rest of the crew understood the situation quickly and the ones that were crying started to wipe their tears away – though it still stubbornly came out.

Luffy blinked when he saw the determination on his friends' faces. What was going on?

Meanwhile, Zoro gazed at the night sky with a blank look beside him. The first mate was silent for a few minutes, before he eventually opened his mouth and said, "Ace...we're sorry."

Zoro could instantly feel Luffy's bewildered gaze upon him, but he paid no heed. Instead, the ex-pirate hunter silently reflected back on the first (and last) time he met Luffy's big brother, under the scorching sun and among the desert sand.

Even now, Zoro could still remember how he'd doubted if Luffy and Ace were even brothers. He thought that Ace was too kind and polite to be related to his reckless and troublesome captain.

But as he spent more time with the Whitebeard commander, all of his doubts vanished completely. Just seeing the pure adoration in Luffy's eyes when he was with Ace had been enough to convince Zoro that yes, Ace was indeed part of the family.

And when it was time to part ways, Ace asked them one simple request.

" _Take care of him for me."_

From the beginning, Zoro knew that request won't be easy. Luffy was a rebellious boy, and due to that, he'd made enough enemies already. He was also _very_ reckless, Zoro lost count to how many times Luffy had risked his life in both battles and normal everyday activities.

But despite that, he along with everyone else in the crew loved him. Luffy protected them in a daily basis, and they wanted to return the favor. That's why everyone accepted Ace's friendly request, telling the fire-user that he can trust his little brother with them.

But as Zoro recalled the newspaper he'd got on that dreadful day and he casted a brief glance at the scar on Luffy's chest, the guilt inside him slowly grew. Well, look how _that_ turned out.

"We made a promise to you back at Alabasta, but we couldn't fulfill it. We failed. You can kick our butts as many times as you want later." Zoro stated with remorse evident in his tone, but it quickly changed into confidence and determination when he added, "But, we _won't_ fail again. We'll definitely protect Luffy this time."

The swordsman paused for a moment before he sealed the deal. "I promise."

Luffy stared at Zoro, astonished. That was the most earnest thing he'd heard Zoro say since their promise at the Baratie two years ago. Luffy could tell that Zoro meant every word and he intended to keep it until death. The look on his first mate's face was one of unwavering determination, and when Luffy glanced behind them, he saw similar looks on his crew's faces as well.

Luffy didn't know what to make out of the warm feeling inside his chest.

The seven Straw-Hats saw their captain's bewildered face and all of them gave him fond smiles, exchanging a silent confirmation that they fully agreed with what Zoro said. When Luffy's face turned slightly red, they barely controlled themselves not to lunge onto him with a suffocating hug right there and then.

"Also, thank you for saving our captain." Zoro's features softened and he finally smiled, bowing his head in the slightest. "We can never repay you enough for that."

Feeling more satisfied than he'd ever been, Zoro finally averted his gaze to Luffy beside him, his smile not going away. Luffy continued to stare at him in wonder before he finally took in Zoro's words, his friends' smiles, _everything_ and the captain couldn't help but grin in return.

"Getting soft there, Moss Head." Sanji commented behind them with a teasing smile.

"Shut up, Dartbrow. Like you wouldn't do the same." Zoro said without looking back, earning a silent chuckle from the blonde.

Luffy laughed at the duo's exchange before he turned his attention towards the lantern in his hands. The orange light from the fire was still bright and Luffy was impressed it hadn't gone out yet. The captain took a few steps forward and lifted his head upwards to the sky before saying, "Ace, make sure you get this okay?"

The Straw-Hats smiled, excited for the grand finale of the night.

Luffy lightened his grip on the lantern and slowly raised his arms to the sky, smiling when the lantern flew away from his hands. All of the Straw-Hats watched as the lantern gave out a beautiful bright light, disclosing the detail on its surface, and flew higher and higher on the dark night sky until it disappeared from sight.

"Happy birthday, big brother." Luffy whispered with a smile, feeling more happy and loved than he'd ever been when he felt his crew embrace him with so much _care_ and _affection_ , he wanted to cry.

And that was how the night ended, with the Straw-Hats' laughter and tears echoing in the air.

* * *

In another world, a giant man with a black bandana sat on his chair and was busy gulping down gigantic cups of sake when he heard footsteps coming towards him. The man halted, looking down at his new company. "What is it, brat?"

A young man with raven hair beamed before him, holding something in his arms. "Pops, look what I got!"

"Oh?" His curiosity took over and the man stared at the new object with a tilted head. "What is that?"

"It's a lantern! Doesn't it look _cool_!?" The raven-haired cried out, his eyes lighting up in childish wonder as he examined every detail on the 'cool' lantern.

The man hummed from his seat. He got to admit, the intricate detail on the object had him impressed. Whoever made it clearly knew what they were doing. "It looks nice. Where were you, actually? You were gone for quite a while."

"I was watching my little brother. He was making this with his crew and he said a bunch of sorries and thank yous, my eardrums almost burst!" The young man replied just as his smile turned to a disapproving scowl. "Stupid brother, why would he say those things?"

"Gurararara." The man laughed before setting his eyes upon the younger's face again. "Is that why you're crying?"

The raven-haired blinked, now fully aware of the liquid streaming down from his eyes.

"Wha- _No_! I'm not crying at all!" He shouted, his face turning into a dark crimson color. "T-These are just from the sea water earlier! The waves were a bit wild and I was a little too close so-!"

"Calm down, brat." The man said with a soothing tone. "It's okay."

The young man stopped, but his face was still red and flustered as he wiped the offensive water off of his face. "Ugh, stupid sea water..."

The man let out a warm smile, his features softening as he said, "Putting that matter aside...are you happy, Ace?"

Ace slowly looked up towards his father figure and he couldn't stop the growing grin on his still wet face. "...yeah, Pops. I'm very happy."

* * *

 **Alright, that's a wrap, people! Finally, this one-shot is _DONE_! Who-hooo! Time to parteehh!**

 **Anyway, I don't want to make this long so I'll just cut to the chase. Please give me your opinions by reviewing or a personal message / PM, I'd appreciate that a lot! Oh, and thanks for reading this story! I hope you like it :D**


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